With axe on shoulder, Steve Lancia, owner of Northcamp, a wilderness and outdoor survival skills camp, at Bruce Park, Greenwich, Conn., Tuesday, July 1, 2014. Lancia's first rule for surviving a wilderness situation is to "stay calm!"

Besides a forestry degree from SUNY Morrisville, Lancia's bio includes being a member of a search and rescue team in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia, a professional with the National Ski Patrol, a licensed New York state guide, an American Red Cross instructor and a licensed emergency medical technician and wilderness technician.

Taught on large, privately owned tracts in Litchfield County and in the area of New Paltz, N.Y., weekend sessions typically enroll up to 10 participants who spend weekend nights in tents. Rates are $65 for the three-hour class and $395 for the wilderness weekend. The classes can be customized, Lancia said.

"Everyone stays in tents at base camp. I'm the Club Med of survival skills. I have a cook," said Lancia, 58. But that doesn't mean his students are coddled. "We spend a lot of time talking about first aid and finding shelter and water."

A weekend several years ago in the woodlands of upper New York state with Lancia was something Greenwich resident Rob Brodsky, 57, and his children, Jake and Olivia, have not forgotten.

"Within 15 minutes, all of us were having fun and laughing. I've done things with Steve since then individually because it was terrific," Brodsky said. "My idea of roughing it is slow room service. This was huge."

Lancia, the owner of Nightec, an outdoor lighting systems business, credited his father, Armand, a Marine who fought on Iwo Jima and Guam during World War II, for being his mentor and teaching him the wilderness skills he passes on to his students.

"I love sharing my knowledge with others. We all have a common interest. We're the same sort of people. My job is to hone the skills that they have and don't know. Bonds are formed when you spend a weekend with someone."

"We looked at it as a team building thing. It was back to basics," said O'Rourke, who learned fire starting, protection from the elements, identifying hazards, edible plants and orienteering.

The goal is to avoid panic, conquer fear, function as a team and find the solutions essential to survive on land and water, according to Lancia, who often refers to a quote from Charles Darwin which states, "It is not the strongest or most intelligent who will survive but those who can best handle change."

That was a lesson Ed Fitzwilliam, 53, of Stamford, learned early in Lancia's weekend wilderness class in the Adirondack Mountains of New York.

"As soon as you know you have no health issues, look for water and shelter and start a fire. You also should look for some means of signaling. You have to maintain a perspective of calmness," he said. "I've always been interested in the outdoors. I went to school in Colorado."

There is a growing interest in living in the wilderness and programs like Northcamp, Lancia said.

"I think it's because of all of the hype and excitement on TV, in the news, magazines, social circles and prepper communities," he said. "Folks want to be a part of what's going on, learn to be more prepared and hone their skill sets."

For those who have no desire to rough it in the wilderness, Lancia has started a new urban preparedness class, which focuses on urban disasters and the societal impact.